Under the rejected proposals, Sefton Central would have lost Harington ward in Formby to Southport – leaving the town split in half across two constituencies.

The new constituency would, however, see the addition of Church and Victoria wards, both currently in the Bootle constituency.

Mr Esterson, who had previously dismissed the plans as “dead in the water”, welcomed the decision.

Mr Esterson said: “This is very good news for Formby.

“To have one MP representing the people of Formby makes much more sense than splitting the area in two.

“Formby residents face a number of issues which are specific to this area, such as the development of green belt land, and to have to deal with more than one person when addressing these problems would have simply been unworkable.”